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Dear Pat: I would like to know if you could get the recipe for Two Step's Mac & Cheese. I'm not a big fan of mac & cheese, but their combination of cheeses is great. My family and I would love to have this recipe if you could get it for us. Thank you.

Dear Sherie: Here's a recipe so good it's been handed down from mother-in-law to son-in-law and is now squarely featured on his restaurant's menu. With a few tweaks to make it restaurant-appropriate, Edna Munoz's recipe for Mac & Cheese has made it to the big time, thanks to son-in-law, chef and operating partner Steve Warner of Two Step Restaurant and Cantina.

As it turns out, Warner lauds the great home cooking of both his mother-in-law and his mother, Brenda Warner, and includes other specialties from them on his menu as well. Although Warner has worked for 20 years in the business, at restaurants ranging from the original Macaroni Grill to Morton's and Eddie V's, and most recently served as executive chef at Wildfish, this is his first foray into restaurant ownership, and clearly, it's a family affair. Wife Adrienne and his father-in-law, brother-in-law and nephew all work in some capacity with the restaurant.

Warner's respect for the past is reflected not only in his inclusion of old family recipes but also in his choice of location for his restaurant. It's housed in a part of Texas history — an old homestead built in the 1850s by Philipp Ruempel as a gift for his bride, Carolina Braun. The restaurant occupies what once were the limestone house and barn. A new building has been added to connect the two, but the charm of the former farming complex remains.

This venue features real Texas foods, not a hybrid of current trendy items. Warner's menu includes dishes that reflect old German meat-smoking techniques, Mexican cooking and other Texas favorites. Oak-smoked meats (also available by the pound), chicken-fried rib-eye, fried catfish, tacos, borracho beans and a bevy of homemade desserts are all there.

And then there's that amazing Mac & Cheese.

Any ridged macaroni is fine, Warner says, and he suggests you cook it ahead to let it dry. This allows the cheese sauce to stick to the macaroni. But the cheese sauce is the key. It includes both American and fontina cheeses added to a thick, rich béchamel sauce.

“The ratio is 2-to-1, macaroni to cheese, but you can adjust it to make it cheesier,” the chef tells us.

When I tested the recipe, it yielded 10 cups of macaroni and seven cups of sauce — two more cups of sauce than required. I voted to stir in all seven cups, and it was sublime, but you can refrigerate the remaining two cups for another use if preferred.

The crunchy panko and Parmesan crust that's sprinkled over the dish and quickly browned under the broiler is the perfect foil for the creamy casserole. A final shower of chopped chives adds a touch of color and mild onion flavor.

So step out and check out the family-friendly Two Step Restaurant and Cantina, and pay homage to a great new Texas tradition.